# Find your way around Firehose

Learn where Firehose keeps its controls, so you can follow any guide on this site. Every guide names a control and where it is; this page shows how those places fit together.

This page describes Firehose 1.0.1.

## The layout on a computer

The Firehose window has four areas, from left to right and top to bottom:

| Area | Where it is | What you use it for |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Icon rail** | The narrow strip of icons on the far left edge | Switch the sidebar between panels. The speech-bubble icon at the top shows **Sessions**. The gear icon at the bottom opens **Settings**. |
| **Sessions sidebar** | Beside the icon rail | See every session, grouped by project. The **+** button in its header, labeled **New session**, starts a session. |
| **Workspace tabs** | A row across the top of the selected session | Open **Terminal**, **Diff**, **Smart Review**, **Ask me**, and other tools. The **Chat** toggle sits at the right end of this row. |
| **Prompt bar and message box** | The bottom of the selected session | The prompt bar shows the session's folder and branch, with **commit** and **tools** on the right. Below it, the message box is where you type to the agent. |

A status bar runs along the very bottom of the window.

<figure class="product-capture">
  <a href="/images/ui/layout-desktop.png"><img src="/images/ui/layout-desktop.png" width="1440" height="900" loading="lazy" alt="Firehose on a computer. The icon rail on the far left has a gear icon at the bottom. The Sessions sidebar lists the hello-firehose project with a plus button in its header. The selected session shows workspace tabs across the top, the conversation in the middle, and the prompt bar with tools above the message box at the bottom."></a>
  <figcaption>The Firehose window: icon rail, <strong>Sessions</strong> sidebar with the <strong>+</strong> button, workspace tabs, and the prompt bar and message box. Select the image to open it full size. Sample project and messages.</figcaption>
</figure>

## Start a session

Select **New session**, the **+** button at the top right of the **Sessions** sidebar. If the sidebar is too narrow to show it, open the **⋮** **Menu** button in the sidebar header instead.

The **New agent session** dialog walks through three steps:

1. **Pick a project.** Choose a project, then select **Next: Choose a workspace**. To create a project, select **New git project** below the list.
2. **Choose a workspace.** Choose **Current checkout**, **New worktree**, or **Existing branch**. See [Choose a workspace](/guides/workspaces/).
3. **Choose an agent.** Choose a provider and model, check permissions, and select **Start session**.

## Open Settings

Select the gear icon labeled **Settings** at the bottom of the icon rail. Settings opens in the sidebar. See [Projects, agents, and settings](/reference/settings/) for what each section does.

<figure class="product-capture">
  <img src="/images/ui/settings-panel.png" width="720" height="900" loading="lazy" alt="Settings open in the sidebar, with the gear icon highlighted at the bottom of the icon rail. Sections include Workspace layout, Open from your other devices with Allow my other devices switched on, Tailscale HTTPS, Account, and Conversation names.">
  <figcaption><strong>Settings</strong> in the sidebar, opened from the gear at the bottom of the icon rail. Sample values.</figcaption>
</figure>

## Work in a session

Select a session in the **Sessions** sidebar to open it.

- **Talk to the agent.** Type in the message box at the bottom, which shows `Type / for commands...` when empty. Press Enter or select the round arrow button at its right to send.
- **Check where it runs.** The prompt bar above the message box shows the session's folder and branch. Select the branch to refresh Git status. For the full path, open **More actions** (the **⋮** at the right end of the workspace tabs), then **Session details**, and read **Directory**.
- **Use tools.** Select **tools** on the prompt bar for **Ask me questions** and **Smart review**. The **commit** button appears beside it when the branch has uncommitted changes.
- **Attach a file.** Select the **+** at the left of the message box's lower row.
- **Check context use.** The **NN% context** button below the message box shows how much of the agent's context window is used, with **Compact** and **Clear**.
- **Stop the agent.** While it works, press Escape in the message box, or select the red stop button, **Stop (interrupt)**, beside the activity indicator above the message box.
- **Close the session.** In the **Sessions** sidebar, select the session row's **⋮** (**Session options**), then **Close**.

<figure class="product-capture">
  <img src="/images/ui/session-composer.png" width="760" height="210" loading="lazy" alt="The bottom of a session. The prompt bar shows the branch main on the left and tools on the right. Below it, the message box shows a plus button, the placeholder Type / for commands..., and a round arrow send button. Under the box are the model name and 9% context.">
  <figcaption>The prompt bar, message box, and <strong>NN% context</strong> button. Sample session.</figcaption>
</figure>

A session's status, such as **Idle** or **Stopping...**, appears on its row in the **Sessions** sidebar.

## The layout on a phone

On a phone, Firehose shows one screen at a time:

- **The session list** is the first screen. The icon rail, including **Settings**, appears only here.
- **A session** fills the screen when you select it. The workspace tabs start with **Chat** and scroll sideways. Select the back arrow in the session header to return to the list.
- **The session header's ⋮ menu** has **Interrupt** and **Session details**.

<figure class="product-capture">
  <img src="/images/ui/mobile-session.png" width="390" height="844" loading="lazy" alt="Firehose on a phone showing one session. The header has a back arrow, the project and branch, and a three-dot menu. Tabs below it start with Chat. The message box is at the bottom.">
  <figcaption>A session on a phone: back arrow and <strong>⋮</strong> menu in the header, tabs starting with <strong>Chat</strong>. Sample project and messages.</figcaption>
</figure>

See [Use Firehose on mobile web](/guides/mobile/) for a full walkthrough.